Hoa Binh and Mai Chau, 10/19
8 am on Sunday, 19 October we departed the Guest House for our eight day northwest study tour. The first stop was Hoa Binh power station, the largest hydroelectric plant in Southeast Asia. We had to wait a few minutes for our guide. It gave us time to look at the two symbols. the front one a representation of a tower for power lines, and the far one Uncle Ho himself.
The plant was started in 1979 and finished in 1994. It produces 1,800 MW of electricity, which is about 25% more than Boulder Dam in Nevada/Arizona.
The Vietnamese are proud of the help they received from the Russians in designing and building the power plant, as is shown by the mural below the control room.
For most of the students it was the first time they had been in a hydroelectric plant, so it was interesting learning some of the basics.
We drove over the dam, and said hello to Uncle Ho. Here Tom shakes hands, and below Molly and Carley show how it is done.
You can see how big the statue is with Jill and Molly standing by one foot. This is the second largest statue of Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam. The largest is in his home town.
We drove over the dam, and said hello to Uncle Ho. Here Tom shakes hands, and below Molly and Carley show how it is done.
You can see how big the statue is with Jill and Molly standing by one foot. This is the second largest statue of Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam. The largest is in his home town.
He bid us a fond farewell and asked us to come back again.
After lunch in Hoa Binh we made it to Mai Chau about 3:00. This is an area inhabited by the White Thai ethnic group. Because of its remote location in a mountain valley, it was spared the deprivation of either war. After checking into our home-stay, shown above, we had about three hours to explore the area. The stilt houses are typical of the minority hill tribes. The stilts originally protected them from an assortment of wild animals, including tigers. Unlike the permanent stairs of today, they would pull up their ladder each night. The stilts still give protection a
gainst things such as snakes, but the area underneath is also used to enclose livestock, or in the case of Mai Chau, to have shops selling wooven products. Some houses still have the thatched roofs made from palm fronds, while others are switching to clay tiles.
In his wanders, Andrew met a new friend, Cliff Oxley, a young water buffalo.
After lunch in Hoa Binh we made it to Mai Chau about 3:00. This is an area inhabited by the White Thai ethnic group. Because of its remote location in a mountain valley, it was spared the deprivation of either war. After checking into our home-stay, shown above, we had about three hours to explore the area. The stilt houses are typical of the minority hill tribes. The stilts originally protected them from an assortment of wild animals, including tigers. Unlike the permanent stairs of today, they would pull up their ladder each night. The stilts still give protection a
gainst things such as snakes, but the area underneath is also used to enclose livestock, or in the case of Mai Chau, to have shops selling wooven products. Some houses still have the thatched roofs made from palm fronds, while others are switching to clay tiles.In his wanders, Andrew met a new friend, Cliff Oxley, a young water buffalo.
The students also ran across some frisky puppies. Here one of them is trying to defeather a chicken. The chicken was amazingly tolerant, even when two went after it at once. The owner of the
puppies said we could have a puppy for 200,000 VND (~$12), so some of the students wanted to adopt.
Friendly animals were the norm of the day,
as were negotiations over woven and embroidered items.
The lady in the two pictures above had a loom set up under her house and was producing the items she sold right there. You can get a hand woven scarf or runner for a
fraction of the price you would pay in the states.
While the students were figuring out what they wanted to buy, the family water buffalo ambled home and flopped down in the front yard puddle. When water buffalo are not being used in the fields, they are often let loose to roam during the day. They know where food awaits them in the evening. I have yet to run across one that was aggressive.
puppies said we could have a puppy for 200,000 VND (~$12), so some of the students wanted to adopt.Friendly animals were the norm of the day,
as were negotiations over woven and embroidered items.
The lady in the two pictures above had a loom set up under her house and was producing the items she sold right there. You can get a hand woven scarf or runner for a
fraction of the price you would pay in the states.While the students were figuring out what they wanted to buy, the family water buffalo ambled home and flopped down in the front yard puddle. When water buffalo are not being used in the fields, they are often let loose to roam during the day. They know where food awaits them in the evening. I have yet to run across one that was aggressive.
After a delicious dinner at the home-stay, we had a dance performance of traditional minority dances. The dances celebrate the harvest, the coming of spring, butterflies, and all sorts of other positive things.
The students got to participate also.
Later in the evening the room where the dances were held was changed into a bedroom for about two thirds of the students. Mats were put on the floor, and mosquito netting was hung from cables supported above head level.
When we arrived it was hazy, even though they weren't burning the remnants of the last rice crop. In the morning it was both foggy and hazy, so we didn't see the full grandeur of the mountains. However, the fog in the morning did add a sort of surreal tone to the scene. This is looking out the front of our home-stay.
The students got to participate also.
Later in the evening the room where the dances were held was changed into a bedroom for about two thirds of the students. Mats were put on the floor, and mosquito netting was hung from cables supported above head level.
When we arrived it was hazy, even though they weren't burning the remnants of the last rice crop. In the morning it was both foggy and hazy, so we didn't see the full grandeur of the mountains. However, the fog in the morning did add a sort of surreal tone to the scene. This is looking out the front of our home-stay.
To the right a woman herds her cow along the road to the next hamlet. The cow would slow down and wait for the woman, then sprint on ahead for a ways. 
School children were also biking to school.
On our way out of town, this man was walking his water buffalo in a rice paddy.
The next leg of our trip was a day-long bus ride to Dien Bien Phu.
School children were also biking to school.
On our way out of town, this man was walking his water buffalo in a rice paddy.
The next leg of our trip was a day-long bus ride to Dien Bien Phu.
Labels: 10/19, Hoa Binh and Mai Chau
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12:56 AM
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